Overcoming objections to close more sales

Does overcoming objections on your sales calls have you stressed?
Or are you just sick and tired of objections like these? 

Thanks, but no thanks.

No, not now.

I have to sleep on it.

I don’t think my husband wants me to do this.

I have to meditate on it.

I don’t think the program’s right for me.

I don’t think you’re right for me.

It just costs too much.

That’s a lot of money.

I don’t think now, or ever.

Then watch the episode below, or simply read on, because today I want to give you six tips for overcoming objections, so you can close more clients for your coaching business.  These strategies will not only help you manage objections like a boss but actually make you feel good doing so.

 

Why Overcoming Objections is About MORE Than Closing

Overcoming objections is not about fighting your clients, talking them into it, pushing them, or being salesy or sleazy. It’s about helping them make the best decision for themselves, and about helping you make the best decision about the clients you’ll invite to work with you. Together, you and your client will come to the best conclusion. The tips I’m going to give you today will help you facilitate an elegant and comfortable sales conversation and objection section, which I actually like to call the “decision-making” section of your call because that’s when you actually help your prospect make the decision that is in their best interest.

The Top Six Tips for Overcoming Objections

Exploring Fears

The first and most important thing I want you to realize is that when people say NO to you on a sales call, what’s really happening is that they’re processing a lot of information. And most of the time it causes them to have some doubts, fears, or concerns because there’s lots of chatter happening in their minds. They’re thinking, “Can I really do this? Is this going to happen for me? Can I succeed at this? Is this process right for me? Is it going to be hard? What if I fail? I failed in the past, maybe I’ll fail again. What will my family say? What will my husband or my wife say, my friends? What impact is this going to have on my schedule? Do I have the time for it?” There are a million questions going through your prospect’s mind, so when they say no, what they’re really doing is stalling you and asking you to give them some space and time.

What I want you to do in this situation is to let the pressure go, exhale, and give your prospect some space. Instead of getting anxious and thinking, “Oh, God. They’re going to go and they’re not going to buy from me right now,” let yourself off the hook and say, “All right, no problem. What’s coming up for you right now? Share with me, what are your concerns? What are you feeling right now? What doubts are in your mind? Let’s really talk through this and let me help you make a good decision here. I’m here to not just talk to you about the program, but my role as a coach is to coach you, starting today, and help you make the best decision you can.”

Make A Money Plan

Many new coaches feel awkward about their own money, their client’s money, and everybody else’s money.  But as a coach, you need to get comfortable having those intimate conversations. So, when you’re working with clients on your discovery calls, money can not be taboo. So simply say, “Hey, let’s make a money plan. Now that we understand some of the concerns you have, we’ve talked through your fears, and we really know what you want and what you struggle with, can we take a look at your finances?” By actually asking your clients, “Are you available to talk about where the money could come from? Are you open to having a money conversation with me?” you’re asking for permission.

Once they give it to you, then you can step in and give them a list of viable options. You can begin by saying, “Well, what are some possibilities for you? Do we have access to savings? Do we have money set aside for this?” You can also ask if they have access to credit, investments, bank loans, family and friends, or private investors. There are also many different online funding sources, including PayPal, PayPal credit, or Blispay – and if they are open to those resources, you can step them through the application process right on the phone. In short, there is a multitude of different sources of funding that you can explore with your prospect, and by really helping them make a money plan you’re adopting a mindset of help and support, as a financial planner or a financial advisor would do in this case.

Address Husbands and Partners

The prospect’s partner may have a very important opinion or play an important role in the financial decision making of the household.  Therefore, before investing in a coaching program, the prospect may need to get their husband, wife, or significant other to buy in. So what we like to do is to address the partnership very early on in the call. Ideally, you want to talk to your prospect about their partner, and ask whether the partner knows about their challenges – whether they have shared with them how important this is, what their goals really are, who’s making the financial decisions, and who’s bringing in the money in the household. By exploring all of these things early on, it won’t come up as a surprise for you during the decision-making phase.

Now, if it does come up in the end, I again want you to act as an advisor. What we often find with our female clients is that they don’t like to share with their husbands how hurt they are, how challenged they feel, or how emotional they really are about things because they don’t want to look weak or to admit to what’s really happening. But it’s really important for them to share that with their partner, to allow them to be present and supportive. So, as a coach, we help our clients explore those conversations and say, “What if you go to your husband and you talk to him, what would he say? What questions would he have? How would he react? And what do we need to tell him and explain to him to gain his buy in?” So, you’re coaching your prospect through the partner conversation so that they feel prepared and they can have a successful conversation with their partner about the investment they want to make with you.

Arm Yourself With Pain Points

Throughout the entire sales conversation, you will be exploring different pain points, or “pain centers,” because they may cause your prospect a lot of trouble and will be the main reasons for why they’ll be looking to work with you. In the beginning of a coaching relationship, people often want to avoid pain more than they want to move toward a goal. So, when you know those pain points and how impactful they are on everything else that’s happening in someone’s life, detailed information about how it’s impacting them, how it’s feeling to them, how long it’s been going on, and how much it actually hurts them, you can bring that back in the end as a mirror. Remind them of what they told you, and say, “You told me that this is happening for you, and now you want to put up with it? How much longer will you be settling with this? What if nothing changes in six months from now? How will you feel? How will you act? How will your life ever change?”

If you’ve done a good job to uncover those pain points in the sales conversation, then, in the end, it should almost feel a little foolish for them to say, “I don’t have the money” or “I don’t have the time.” Because when they share with you those deep pain points and how urgent the problem really is for them, it’s almost like they can’t back out of it anymore. Imagine they have told you that it is now or never, they need to be getting their business up and running now because they’re running out of money, or they are stressing out at their job so much that they can hardly take it anymore. And then, in the end, they tell you, “You know what? I have to think about it. I have to sleep on it. Now is not the right time,”  it seems a bit silly.  So hold the mirror up again, and ask them to explain.  You might say, “You just told me how urgent this is for you and now you’re saying you have to think about it? Tell me more, tell me why that is.”  If you’re able to point out how the candidate or the prospect might be fooling themselves or pulling back from you or the solution, you can show them how it’s really not benefiting them and how moving forward is in their best interest.

Testimonials and Case Studies

A highly effective thing you can do during the decision-making process is to bring up examples of case studies, testimonials from past clients, or even bring your own examples to the call and tell them what your own experience was like. So you might say, “Hey, you remind me of my client, Suzy. Suzy felt the way you’re feeling right now, but what we found was that when Suzy took those steps and she worked with us, Suzy actually accomplished so much more. As a matter of fact, today Suzy is over here. And you also remind me of my client, Bob. When Bob came to us, Bob had these same exact challenges that you’re facing right now, and Bob felt exactly the way you’re feeling right now. But what we found was that when Bob worked with us and he took those steps and he was fighting through it, now Bob is in this situation. And look at how much Bob has accomplished.”

Find examples from actual, real-life clients or from your own story, and give them as proof of those who have gone before them to give your prospect some confidence that somebody else has already accomplished what they want to do. This may give them the final push of confidence that they need to say yes to working with you.

Have A Great Follow-Up Process

A lot of times, your prospect might not be able to make a decision right then on the call with you, and that’s okay. You do what you can – you talk about their fear, you make a money plan, you talk about their spouses, you talk about all the things that are coming up, you give them examples of clients and testimonials, and you bring back those pain points they mentioned to you. But if they simply need more time, that’s okay too – as long as you have an amazing follow-up process.

One of the biggest mistakes new coaches make is to simply let the prospect go. And then you chase them. If you don’t have another appointment, you will email them, text them, call them, and message them, and say, “Hey, Suzy. What happened? Where did you go? Do you want to talk again? Should we book something now?” And you’ll feel sort of foolish, right? You’ll feel like you’re running after them, which is not a very professional way to manage the sales conversation or the follow-up process. So, if somebody needs more time, we tell them, “No problem, when would be a good time for us to talk again?” Book a scheduled and agreed upon follow-up call with them right there on the phone, so that you always have another appointment in the calendar to speak with them again.

Still need support closing more deals for your coaching business? Well, I have something really special for you. Click HERE right now to download your Anatomy of a Sales Call Guide, where I’ll show you every section of a sales call step-by-step, and how to manage those sections like a real pro. This will allow you to minimize the objections you’re getting on your calls because you’re mastering and managing the call the right way to begin with. This will help you close more sales, gain more clients for your coaching business, and do the work you’re meant to do.

Now, as always, stay focused on your goals. Go out there, host your discovery calls, and have fun doing them. Remember, sales is love and serving people – you’re coaching them right on your discovery call, so have fun with the relationships your building and the connections you’re making. Go out there, do your best, and get those clients in the door so you can bring your passions to the world.

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